Brite Energy Aids More Than 50 Startups in 2021

WARREN, Ohio — Last year, Brite Energy Innovators helped 51 startup clients raise more than $28 million in revenue, according to its 2021 Annual Report.

Brite aided those startups in employing nearly 300 full-time workers and another 100-plus contractors, with an average annual salary of more than $114,000, according to a press release. Other highlights in the report outline awards from the U.S. Department of Energy, generation of federal funds, strategic alliances with major metropolitan areas and a client selected as a national Startup of the Year finalist.

“Over 2021, we saw tremendous growth,” said Rick Stockburger, Brite’s CEO. “We met with President Joe Biden, launched our youth outreach program on emerging energy technologies and careers, saw a major player move here to Ohio instead of the west coast, and improved our visibility while expanding our team.”

That work wouldn’t be possible without the critical relationships Brite has built with organizations in the Mahoning Valley and across the state, adds Sara Daugherty, director of partnerships.

“It truly is a team effort,” she said. “Every time a founder reaches a new milestone, creates a new product, or attracts a new investor, we know that means more future jobs and continued growth for the Voltage Valley and that is the core reason for our existence.”

Visit Brite.org to download the complete report.

Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.